During an interview with Walt Disney Co. chief financial officer Jay Rasulo last year, the subject of waiting on long lines for rides at Disney Parks came up.

Jay was fresh off introducing the "no queue queue" concept for the planned Dumbo attraction in the new Fantasyland (which is on track to debut next year), and was more than a little enthused about the direction the company was taking in solving the dilemma of long wait times for attractions.

This raven-themed organ, which plays a spooky tune when you touch the keys, is dedicated to Thurl Ravenscroft, the voice of a talking ghost head on the ride.

"At some point the business model evolves around queueing at some level," he said, "so our goal now is to make those queues an entertainment experience and not just waiting in line.

"The queue at Dumbo is more about letting our guests entertain themselves while they’re waiting to ride ... so they feel like they’ve been entertained for 30 or 40 minutes."

And before they realize it, he added, a half hour will fly by and they’re on the attraction enjoying themselves "instead of becoming an expert on the back of the head of the person in front of you."

Over the last few years, Disney’s planners have taken that philosophy to heart and have upgraded a number of attractions, making the line experience far less tedious and downright fun.

In the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, for instance, imaginative interactive queue areas have popped up at Space Mountain and The Many Adventure of Winnie the Pooh.

In Epcot a few years ago, an interactive game where guests lead an animated bird through a computer-animated forest have helped Soarin’ riders pass the time on that very popular attraction.

"I would like to see more and more of that happen over time so that folks who are spending their valuable money and time to come down to see us really feel like their day is full of entertainment more than anything else," Rasulo said.

This headstone pays homage to Francis Xavier -- or X Atencio, the man who wrote the lyrics to the Haunted Mansion's theme song.

Most recently, the venerable Haunted Mansion received an extreme queue makeover.

The Haunted Mansion has been a Magic Kingdom mainstay since opening day in 1971. Aside from the usual maintenance work and refurbishments, the attraction pretty much remained unchanged until 2007, when an elaborate staircase scene, a more ingenious seance scene and a new room featuring troubled bride Constance Hatchaway were added.

Apparently, the 999 happy haunts inside the mansion wanted their compatriots entombed outside to receive the same treatment, so this spring, Disney has introduced a new queue that is sure to (forgive us) liven up the line experience.

The names of many of Disney’s most respected Imagineers have been chiseled in stone — make that a headstone — and it’s worth your time to check out each one.

There are tributes to many of the Imagineers responsible for creating the Haunted Mansion, including Ken Anderson, Rolly Crump, Blaine Gibson, Marc Davis, Francis Xavier (or X Antencio, who wrote the lyrics to the mansion’s theme song) and Yale Gracey.

Unfortunate bride Constance Hatchaway with one of her victims ... ah, beaus.

In addition to the headstones, guests get to touch a number of Haunted Mansion-themed items, including a bookcase where books randomly slide out, a raven-themed pipe organ (featuring a tribute to ghost voice Thurl Ravenscroft) and a number of interactive crypts.

And lest we forget, a change was made at the end of the ride when the hitchhiking ghost joins you in your Doom Buggy and follows you home.

Before he hops in, your own head appears to vaporize into thin air, replaced by the head of one of those classic grim, grinning ghosts.

As Rasulo puts it, "Technology has allowed us the opportunity to move our business from kind of a one-size-fits-all to an experience that is much more personalized to each and every guest."

What could be more personalized than sharing a Doom Buggy with a ghost?